Liniere’s Maise Lützhøft Nielsen and Nicoline Dalgaard on Challenging What Lingerie Can Be and Giving It “A Renewed Aesthetic”
If there’s one brand that has managed to find the perfect balance between traditional lingerie craftsmanship and designs that feel expressive enough to make an ordinary Monday morning feel special, it’s Liniere, the Danish label founded by Maise Lützhøft Nielsen and Nicoline Dalgaard. Born after a night at Berlin’s KitKat Club, where the pair found themselves surrounded by people expressing desire, sexuality, and identity in endlessly beautiful ways, the brand offers a much-needed departure from the same lace sets, beige tones, and predictable silhouettes that have long defined the intimates space.
Some of Liniere’s most beloved designs show exactly what the brand is about: making lingerie that feels romantic, timeless, and full of life. The Soft Kiss set, for example, was built around a one-of-a-kind lace Dalgaard first discovered years ago during a sourcing trip to France, while the Kirsten set, inspired by Kirsten Dunst’s character in 1999’s The Virgin Suicides, channels innocence, rebellion, and romance through milky pink silk and old-school lace.
More than anything, Nielsen and Dalgaard say they want women to slip into Liniere and “feel confident, playful, and completely themselves.” Describing the wearer they have in mind, the founders explain, “She enjoys surprising people while remaining true to who she is. She values self-care and understands the joy of investing in beautiful things for herself.”
Ahead, we spoke with Nielsen and Dalgaard about launching Liniere, challenging the conventions of lingerie, hunting down special fabrics, and why the right material can change everything. Read on for our conversation.
To start, I’d love to learn more about Liniere’s history. What inspired you and Nicoline to create a lingerie brand together?
Liniere was born from a shared desire to create a brand dedicated entirely to lingerie – one that challenges conventional ideas of what lingerie can be. We felt there was room for a fresh perspective in the industry, combining traditional techniques and craftsmanship with playful, unexpected design details.
The idea started to take shape during a trip to Berlin. After spending a night at KitKat Club, surrounded by people expressing themselves and their sexuality in so many different beautiful ways, we began talking about the state of lingerie back home. What started as a slightly joking conversation quickly became something much more serious. A few months later, we both agreed it was an idea worth pursuing.
Our different backgrounds also made us a strong partnership. Nicoline came from years of experience in design, having worked for brands such as Marques’Almeida, Wax London and Saks Potts, while Maise spent five years at Saks Potts, eventually becoming Head of E-Commerce. Together, we felt we had the creative and commercial foundation to build something meaningful.
Before starting the brand, how did you view the lingerie industry? In your eyes, how has it changed over the years?
Before launching Liniere, we often found ourselves questioning why the aesthetic side of the lingerie industry felt somewhat stagnant. It seemed that many brands relied on similar lace qualities, similar colour palettes, and familiar silhouettes.
The more we talked about it, the more we wanted to create a lingerie brand that offered dedicated lingerie with a renewed aesthetic that wasn’t afraid to play with different materials and techniques that feels exciting enough to wear on an ordinary Monday morning.
At the same time, dedicated lingerie brands remain surprisingly rare, particularly in Denmark. Compared to other areas of fashion, there are relatively few brands focusing exclusively on lingerie. That creates an interesting opportunity both creatively and commercially. We hope to contribute to a growing awareness that lingerie deserves the same attention and consideration as the rest of a woman’s wardrobe.
Can you tell us about some of your favorite pieces from Liniere?
Choosing a favourite piece is difficult, as every style carries its own story, but two designs remain particularly special to us.
The Soft Kiss set holds a unique place in our hearts because it was built around a lace Nicoline first discovered years ago during a sourcing trip to France. Coming from a Haute Couture lace supplier, it was far too precious and expensive to use in ready-to-wear collections at the time, so it stayed tucked away for years. When Liniere came to life, it immediately felt like the perfect opportunity to finally bring it into the world. We searched for alternatives, but nothing compared, and it ultimately became the foundation of the Soft Kiss set.
The Kirsten set is equally close to us. Inspired by Kirsten Dunst’s character in The Virgin Suicides, it captures the balance between innocence, rebellion, and romance that we often strive for in our designs. Crafted from delicate milky pink silk and finished with an old-school lace, it evokes a sense of nostalgia while referencing the lingerie silhouettes of the 1960s. It was also one of our most challenging styles to develop, taking almost a year and eight different samples before we achieved the fit, support, and balance we were looking for.
I’d also love to hear more about the process of designing lingerie. What goes into creating a new bra or pair of panties for Liniere? How do you decide when a piece is complete?
Designing lingerie is a balance between creativity and technical expertise. While there is a great deal of innovation involved, lingerie is also highly technical, and fit is everything. We often begin by exploring classic shapes and constructions that have stood the test of time. From there, we reinterpret them through the Liniere lens, challenging expectations around materials and details are what inspires us the most.
A design is complete when it achieves the balance we are looking for between aesthetics, comfort, and fit. Sometimes that happens quickly, and sometimes it takes much longer. The Kirsten Soft Bra, for example, required eight rounds of development before we felt it delivered the support and silhouette we envisioned. We never rush products through simply to launch something new. That is also why our Editions never end up as planned and sometimes we have to move the styles around in between them depending on which developments were finished first.
How challenging is it to source the right fabrics and materials?
In the beginning, it was actually much harder than we expected. From day one, we knew we wanted to produce in Europe and work primarily with European materials, but we also had a strong desire to challenge the traditional fabrics used in lingerie. We were particularly drawn to cotton qualities, which are not commonly used in lingerie and are often associated more with classic shirting than intimate apparel.
Because of that, we spent a long time searching for the right fabrics and partners. We had to learn how different materials behave on the body, how they interact with various construction techniques, and how fit and support can be created in ways that don’t necessarily rely on the conventional stretch fabrics typically found in lingerie.
As our understanding grew, so did our perspective on fabrics. We began to realise that the magic often lies not in a single material, but in the combination of fabric, technique, and construction. Suddenly, far more possibilities opened up to us than we had initially imagined.
Alongside this journey, we were fortunate to discover a small family-owned lace and embroidery mill in Italy that creates some of the most beautiful materials we have ever come across. Together, we develop custom patterns and designs, meaning many of the laces and embroideries used in our collections are exclusive to Liniere and cannot be found anywhere else. That is incredibly meaningful to us, as it allows us to create something truly unique while preserving the craftsmanship and heritage that inspire us.
Liniere has a wide variety of bridal lingerie, including garters and beautifully made silk and lace bras. In your opinion, what makes the perfect bridal lingerie?
For us, bridal lingerie should feel deeply personal! We have always been drawn to traditions and romantic notions of dressing, which is why bridal lingerie feels particularly close to our hearts. Personally, we are endlessly inspired by classic and old-school lingerie. If we were choosing pieces for our own weddings, they would undoubtedly be rooted in that world and definitely have a little something blue!
We are especially fascinated by the grandeur and drama of the 18th century and figures like Marie Antoinette. There is something incredibly inspiring about that era’s sense of extravagance, romance, and femininity. While our designs are always intended to have a modern touch and always be wearable, we often find ourselves looking back to those historical references when imagining what makes lingerie feel truly special.
How do you want customers to feel when they slip on one of the pieces you’ve designed?
We hope our customers feel confident, playful, and completely themselves. The Liniere woman is multifaceted and full of contrasts. She enjoys surprising people while remaining true to who she is. She values self-care and understands the joy of investing in beautiful things for herself.
One of the things we love most about lingerie is that it can remain your own little secret beneath a knitted sweater or a tailored blazer. We want women to wear our pieces because they make them feel good – not for anyone else’s approval, but for their own enjoyment.
Liniere is launching its flagship store in Copenhagen in July. How excited are you both, and did the pop-up shops help shape what you wanted the store to become?
We are really excited about opening our first flagship store in Copenhagen on July 9th at Kronprinsessegade 5. The store is located in one of the charming historic pavilions nestled between Rosenborg Castle and the King’s Garden, right in the heart of the city. It feels like the perfect setting for Liniere both being romantic, timeless, and full of character.
Since launching Liniere, one of the most rewarding experiences has been meeting our customers in person and seeing how they interact with the collection. Those experiences have reinforced the importance of creating a physical space where women can discover the brand, explore the fabrics and craftsmanship, and most importantly, getting the right guidance in choosing a bra that fits.
The response to Liniere since launch has been overwhelmingly positive and has encouraged us to dream even more. Opening a permanent space feels like a dream come true!
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